Goodbye to our dear friend, Paul Parsons

Last night we lost a member of our Guild family, Paul Parsons. He passed away suddenly last night and will surely be missed by all who knew him. Whether it was planning for and cooking for a trip or starting up the shanty singing at potlucks, he knew how to improve morale and get people engaged. We extend our deepest condolences to his family and wish them all the best in this difficult time.

In this video clip, on June 12 in Baltimore, Paul talks from the Gazela galley about his role as ship’s cook.

4 Responses

Eric

Paul loved cooking, he loved sailing on Gazela, and he loved singing sea shanties. He was well known outside of the guild because of the camaraderie he enjoyed with other sea shanty singers. I shall miss him.

His funeral will be at 2:00 PM on Monday, July 1st, at Goldsteins’ Philadelphia Chapel, 6410 N. Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19126. There will also be a celebration of Paul’s life at 10:30 AM on Saturday, July 13, 2013, aboard Gazela.

Beth Parsons-Suess

I want to thank Pete for giving my brothers family a private tour. He was very detailed and it was obvious he knew my brother as well as the ship. He let my sister and I ring the bell my brother used to call meals. It is nice to know that his working vacations were appreciated. He loved to cook and he loved to sing and that was the best of both worlds to him. He always called me and talked before and after his voyages. It is comforting to know that our brother meant as much to us as he did to your ship. Thank you again for helping us understand even more about his ship life. Beth Parsons-Suess.

Charlie Miller

It was an honor and a privilege singing on board the Gazela today. Paul was a special person. I hope you’ll all join us at Chantey Night at the Mermaid (www.themermaidinn.net) this Tuesday when we’ll sing more farewells to Paul and lift a few pints in his memory.